Page 31

Despite the gravity of the situation, I found myself grinning. "I can see why you're drawn to her," I said to Rowen. "She doesn't defer, even to you."

"She doesn't defer to anyone," Rowen replied dryly. "It's infuriating."

"It's refreshing," I countered, taking another step closer to Sierra. "But you're wrong about one thing. This isn't just a 'Fae thing.' Your heat is unique because you are unique – caught between worlds, between magics. There is something very unusual about your abilities."

As I spoke, a breeze rippled through the meadow, carrying with it the scent of Sierra's arousal – sweet and sharp and undeniably potent. My fangs throbbed in response, and I had to clench my fists to keep from reaching for her.

"The realm recognizes you," I continued, nodding toward the flowers that had turned to face her like miniature suns tracking her movement. "It sees in you what I see – potential. Power. Completion."

"That doesn't tell me anything," Sierra said, though her voice had softened, her eyes tracking the strange behavior of the plants around us.

"Doesn't it?" I reached out, not quite touching her but allowing my hand to hover near her cheek. Heat radiated between us, the bond pulsing eagerly at the near-contact. "You feel it. The way everything comes alive around you. The way your skin burns when I'm near. The way your body knows what your mind refuses to accept."

Her breath hitched, pupils dilating until only a thin ring of color remained. "And what is that, exactly?"

"That you belong to me," I said simply. "To us. That the four of us are meant to be bound together, to balance each other."

A low growl emanated from Rowen, warning and agreement in one complex sound. Archer remained silent, but his scent had sharpened, his breathing quickened as he watched our interaction with hungry eyes.

"I don't belong to anyone," Sierra insisted, though the flush on her cheeks deepened. "I'm here for answers, not to be claimed like some possession."

"Stubborn," I murmured, finally allowing my fingers to brush against her cheek. The contact sent a jolt of electricity through me, the bond between us flaring bright and demanding. I heard her gasp, felt her inadvertent lean into my touch. "Your heat says otherwise, flower. Your body knows what it needs, even if your pride won't let you admit it."

"And what about what you need?" she challenged, recovering her composure enough to meet my gaze directly. "You're awfully confident about claiming me, but what do I get in return?"

The question surprised a laugh out of me – bright and genuine in a way I hadn't laughed in decades. "What do you get? Power beyond your imagining. Protection from those who would use you for your abilities. Pleasure that would make the gods themselves envious." I leaned closer, my lips near her ear. "And me, Sierra. All of me, bound to you as surely as you would be bound to me."

I saw the shiver that ran through her, felt the corresponding surge in our nascent bond. Her scent grew richer, headier, as her body responded to my words despite her determination to remain detached.

"And them?" she asked quietly, nodding toward Rowen and Archer. "Are they just... extras in this arrangement? Do they get any say?"

I straightened, meeting first Rowen's gaze, then Archer's. "They are as essential to this as you or I," I said honestly. "Four points of balance. Four sources of power." My eyes lingered on Archer, on the graceful line of his throat, the way his daggers glinted in the sunlight. "Four mates, bound by more than mere convenience or political necessity."

Archer's lips parted slightly, his ice-blue eyes darkening as he understood my meaning. Through the bond that had begun to form between us during our brief time together in the Underworld, I felt his surprise – and his interest.

"You want to mark me," he stated, not a question but a realization.

"Yes." I saw no reason to deny it. "Just as Rowen has. Balance, Archer. You understand the concept better than most."

"And you think I'd allow that?" Archer's voice was carefully neutral, but I caught the slight hitch in his breathing, the way his pulse quickened at the hollow of his throat.

"I think you'd more than allow it," I replied, allowing a slow smile to spread across my face. "I think you'd beg for it, given the right incentive."

Sierra's eyes widened at the exchange, her gaze darting between Archer and me with dawning comprehension. "Wait, you two...?"

"Not yet," I said, my eyes never leaving Archer's face. "But soon." I finally turned back to her. "That surprises you? That I desire him as well as you?"

"I..." She hesitated, clearly recalibrating her understanding of the complex dynamics between us. "I hadn't thought about it."

"Perhaps you should," Rowen interjected smoothly, his hand coming to rest possessively on the small of Sierra's back. "The bond between the four of us isn't merely about reproduction, Sierra. It's about balance. Completion." His obsidian eyes gleamed with dark amusement. "And pleasure, in all its forms."

I watched the flush spread from Sierra's cheeks down her neck, disappearing beneath the collar of her tunic. Through our strengthening bond, I felt her confusion, her embarrassment – and beneath it, a flicker of arousal at the mental images Rowen's words had conjured.

"This is all so... complicated," she said finally. "I came here for answers, not to get caught up in some supernatural orgy."

I couldn't help the bark of laughter that escaped me. "Blunt as ever, I see," I said, allowing my eyes to roam over her appreciatively. "The orgy, as you so eloquently put it, is an inevitability once your heat reaches its peak. But you're right – we owe you answers first."

I extended my hand to her, palm up in a formal gesture of Fae courtesy. "Come with me to the palace. There's a library with texts that may help you understand what's happening to you. And," I added with a slight smile, "private chambers where we can continue this discussion away from the prying eyes of my court."